Chapter 1: trompe l'oeil
"I honestly have to grapple with difficulty in this story I wrote myself. Sometimes there are things you write with your eyes closed. If you are an erudite, best believe I was the first one to cringe.
They are originally Western characters, just by their psyche alone. They are also treated in the Western traditions. You just got to read them now as Japanese characters because it's posted on a Japanese web novel site."
- the author
Yes, the author.
Meet Mayumi Topacio, a girl who loves to discuss the gender gap, where women don't get promoted even when they work as hard or better than men, or aren't seen as competent equals in middle and upper management - something that is a personal issue for Mayumi.
Let us introduce you to Hayate Nakashima, a boy who loves to further incite Mayumi's intense emotions. Whether or not he truly believes what he says, or just likes to provoke Mayumi, the whole class will have to decide whenever the professor pits the two against each other.
"Women should be in the kitchen."
"You!" Mayumi pointed. "Your way of thinking, which seems to have erupted from the dinosaur era, is the cause of the declining birthrate."
The whole class let out a confused "Huh?"
"Mayumi-san, why is that still a topic of discussion?" the professor interjected.
"Are you saying that Nakashima-san's traditional role is the cause of the declining birth rate?"
"Professor, I would like you to call me Umi-san," Mayumi turned to the professor. "Well, if men have paleolithic minds and refuse to evolve from the dinosaur era, it's no wonder women don't want to have children with them."
"I don't want a woman like Godzilla either," Hayate remarked sarcastically.
A boy in the corner burst out in laughter, while the girls tried to remain calm and conceal their reactions.
Mayumi gave Hayate a pointed look. "Ad hominem, sensei."
Hayate smiled coolly and calmly, and opened his mouth to retort. "It's a false dilemma, sensei."
"Objection accepted, both of you."
Mayumi turned to face the professor of the class and then looked at the girls.
"Sir, let me backup my point. A 2023 Wharton/Penn study clearly shows this contradiction. Subsequent studies have further pointed out this inequality in which women working in corporations are forced to work at home as well, compared to their male colleagues."
"That's in the West, Mayumi-san. It's a different society. In this society, certain traditions are observed for the stability of the nation as a whole."
"A Paleolithic brain."
"Teacher, Ad hominem," Hayate rebutts.
"I accept the objection."
"What? Why?" Mayumi turned to Hayate with a dissatisfied look on her face and whispered.
"As a developed country and economic powerhouse in the region, there is a strong belief that we should embrace new perspectives. However, when we examine this in practice and norms, we find that such thinking has barely penetrated the diverse institutions of our society. Women should learn not to empower themselves through the power of corporations, but through how they work with the values they have been brought up with."
"Teacher, what kind of appeal is that? Is it pathos?" Mayumi interrupted.
"I'm not done yet, Mayumi-san."
Hayate looked the professor straight in the eye and said, "Ever since this civilization began and evolved, the underlying norms have remained stable and unchanged. Even though we wear fashionable clothes, we are still ourselves from the time when this country flourished in its formation, not from the dinosaur era as Mayumi-san would have you believe."
Hayate looked at Mayumi for a moment, then continued, "While men have taken on these roles, women have done it for them. If women see themselves in kitchen-side roles, it shouldn't be looked down upon by those who don't want that. In fact, we shouldn't over-glorify a demanding career that has traditionally been a man's."
"Professor, that's not a valid argument," Mayumi interrupted. "No one looks down on women who accept traditional roles, but someone generalized that 'all women should be in the kitchen.' Shouldn't we be looking into Japan's long history? Wait, shouldn't we all agree that the way women achieve their dreams today is different than it was over 500 years ago? What about this man's values." Mayumi pointed at Hayate again. "Are they supposed to be outdated, like Paleolithic sentiments, relics that should fall into disuse and not evolve?"
"That's a fallacy, Professor," Hayate interrupted.
"Rejected," said the professor.
The bell rang for the last class of the day. Some students sighed, others began to pack their bags, but the professor looked at his watch.
"Yes, extension. No room for negotiation. Otherwise, you will all get a zero on the next quiz," the professor continued.
The classroom erupted in unison in disgusted gasps.
"Nande?" one student whispered to his friend sitting next to him.
"Mayumi, Hayate, yamete da yo!" they whispered in weak voices.
"A Yamato Nadeshiko is like graceful water, carving out her own path and blending harmoniously into society. She is dedicated to her duties and contributes to society with grace and dignity. If we are to discuss the issue of the division between men and women and the traditions that have been upheld, it would be an exaggerated statement to say that women had no place in this society. If we are to believe that men are eroding our population in order to take revenge on women," Hayate continued.
"Professor, that's reductio ad absurdum," Mayumi retorted. "The Yamato Nadeshiko is a concept invented by men. And it was women with strength and dignity who fought for my right to study today, and for my right to earn my own money tomorrow and be financially independent without relying on men. Defying male authority is not revenge. It's an assertion that women should be seen as they want to be heard."
"Okay," said the professor. "That's all. The rest is your assignment. You'll cover it in the next quiz. Class over."
The class rose to their feet and quickly dispersed, the other students groaning in frustration.
"Mayumi-san, I just want to be treated like a princess," one of her classmates said.
"It takes a lot of trust to give up your autonomy and put it in the hands of a man who will treat you like a princess," Mayumi said as she packed her things. "You should test his character first. Will he cheat on you? Will he spend his money on other women? Is he someone you can depend on and be okay with?"
Mayumi's classmate shook her head. "That's too negative, Umi-chan. Too negative. Isn't it a man's pride to protect women?"
Mayumi zipped her bag. "Are you going to hide in the shadows?"
"If they're going to protect me, that's fine. I don't want to work."
Mayumi chuckled. "I guess that's one way of looking at it."
Her classmates laughed too.
"Nakashima-kun, what does it mean to be a Yamato Nadeshiko?" A female student approached Hayate, resting her chin on her hand. "Is Yamato Nadeshiko cute? I like cute things."
Hayate smiled. "Of course, if you smile more, you'll be cuter. Mayumi-san," Hayate called out to Mayumi. "Why don't you try smiling more? Then maybe you'll be a little cuter."
Mayumi didn't answer, and as it was already night, she quickly left the classroom. She took out her smartphone and checked the time. It was already late, around 6pm. Mayumi slid the notification bar and set it to airplane mode.
She was in no mood to mess around with the same person twice.
Mayumi needs to retake her studies, she must. Her father has given her an ultimatum: if she doesn't graduate with Latin Honors in Tokyo, he will send her back home in the Philippines immediately.
That was her father's final condition before she was allowed to fly and study here.
Her mother used to tell her wonderful stories about growing up in Tokyo, before settling in Manila and opening up a restaurant, with all the important household decisions still being made by her father.
Mayumi had insisted on going to Tokyo, contrary to her father's wishes that she should remain in Manila.
Her mother is Japanese who gave her the name Mayumi with a distinct kanji, and it was her mother who insisted that Mayumi's name be written in kanji rather than katakana.
But her mother also insisted on calling her "Yumi-chan." The sweet, gentle, cheerful "Yumi-chan." In fact, Mayumi hated it at all.
In truth, she was cursing the world, resenting the fact that her mother was so dependent on her father for the way her life would turn out.
"Mayumi, be sure to come home before sunset," her father often told her.
"What time will you get home after your friends' sleepover? Where do they live? Is it far away?" These are the questions Mayumi's father asked when she asked permission to stay out overnight with her friends.
"Yumi, you should go to school here. If you take the train you can go home in no time."
When she was in high school, Mayumi hated her father's excessive control and began to rebel. To her, her father was like a security camera.
For her father, it was for the safety of his daughter, Mayumi.
Which one was right is up to those who know them.
In junior high school, Mayumi learned to smoke cigarettes. She and her friends smoked two packs of Mighty a day.
When her father found her late one night and smelled of cigarette smoke, he dragged her back home crying. He punished her in front of her siblings and Mayumi was humiliated. But that didn't stop Mayumi from rebelling. At just 15 years old, she started drinking alcohol.
Mayumi's rebellion came to a halt when she finally realized that flying to Tokyo would be a quick escape for her, where she could apply for consideration as a Japanese descent.
Now, all Mayumi's father knows is her good grades. Everything else doesn't matter to him.
Mayumi, or Umi as she likes to be called, ran through the library. She lives in the dorms and plans to stay up all night cramming.
Papers, papers and more papers. Mayumi had to gather all the books she needed to annotate and cross-reference in preparation for tomorrow's new cycle of hell.
After two hours of immersing herself in the quiet and calm atmosphere of the library, she sensed someone sitting down in front of her.
"Don't you get tired of doing that?"
"I don't like average scores," Mayumi replied.
"Want to let off some steam?"
"What happened to that cute girl from the fashion department?"
"We broke up."
Mayumi looked up and saw that Hayate had said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She went back to cross-referencing. "Too bad. Didn't you say you liked girls with cute smiles?"
"Well, yeah."
However, Hayate didn't say anything more than that, leaving Mayumi feeling slightly confused.
It took Hayate several minutes more to get up and find a book to read. By the time he grew tired of reading Kant and Hegel, he had checked the time.
8:45pm. Okay, they have to leave now. School is closing.
Hayate stood up and straightened his chair.
"It's closing time, Umi. Ike zo."
"I want to go straight back to the dorms."
"That's a shame. I had a hotpot ready at my apartment."
Umi raised her head and looked at Hayate with deep concentrated eyes. "Has it been three months already? Where are the STI test results?"
Hayate snorted and looked away. "Damn it. I forgot. Maybe I should have brought some sort of ID, don't you think? At my apartment."
Umi nodded and continued her work. "Please let me extend this library's closing time a little longer."
Umi-chan continued to make the most of her time. She got up and finished copying all the rest.
Hayate was, in Umi's lingo, an "it boy." In simple high school terms, he was popular.
But Umi-chan likes precision.
Hayate is one of the more well-known figures in his department. He rents a nice apartment off-campus. He's the type of guy who likes to hang out in the park and chat casually, and he has a modest but good sense of style.
Hayate dates and excels in his program.
Umi didn't care about the rest.
To be precise, Umi and Hayate had a physical relationship in order to prove their opposing claims that this is the only reason heterosexuals like them still date.
Who cares about men apart from the physical intimacy they provide? Everything else is just an empty declaration of their own ego.
Besides, Hayate is good looking, and it's not a bad thing for Umi to enjoy that every once in a while.
Have a good piece of that looker if opportunity offered it. It's not that hard, really. Ethically speaking, that is up for debate.
And whether or not Hayate will cheat on his ongoing girlfriend is something Umi doesn't want to be involved in the drama.
It doesn't concern her.
So when Hayate is dating someone, it means that their physical relationship is over. Nothing more, nothing less. It's as clear as daylight, it's over.
When it came to intimacy, they both agreed they had an aversion to developing feelings -- it's not something they want, and it's not a place they'll ever get to.
When Umi and Hayate shut out their respective views, their bodies could speak to each other in sync and they liked it.
Umi finished scanning her documents, nodded to the library staff, and packed her things. She thought about the hellish quiz the professor had announced earlier, and anxiety flooded her.
That professor always wanted long essays to always debunk his hypotheses, and whether the submitted papers were sound or not, he was very good at burning down everyone's confidence with a perfect zero.
That teacher was terrifying and a perfectionist. He loved formality above all else. And accuracy, of course.
Umi-chan needed to back off. Hayate had just broken up with his girlfriend.
"When did you break up?" Umi asked as they left the campus gates.
Hayate's lips refused to curve into a faint smile. "Worried? Why would you care?"
"A week? Or a day? Hayate," Umi-chan said, her face turning stern. "I'm so preoccupied with that damn quiz that I don't have time to be caught in a mess next to the girl you just broke up with. I might get attacked by your ex-girlfriend holding a misplaced grudge."
Hayate laughed lightly. "So that's a woman's revenge, I see."
"That should fall on you, not on some other girl. It's only natural, seeing as you're two or three-timing her. How long has it been since your last break-up?"
"I didn't count, sorry."
Umi-chan was shocked. "Nani kore? I'm going back to the dorm. I want to get a good night's sleep and start reviewing early tomorrow. Jaa."
Umi-chan turned around and headed back to campus.
Hayate quickly pulled Umi back, "We're already over. It was supposed to be after Golden Week."
"Last month? What about the other girls?"
"Which girls are you talking about?" Hayate looked confused. "Are you talking about the girls I was two-timing, or three-timing? Do I look like I have the time to care about more than one person at a time?"
"How could I know? That's what you care about. This is supposed to be a physical relationship that minimizes outside inconvenience. Ideally, a one-on-one relationship. It's not that I care what you do outside it, but I need to be assured that you're STI-free."
"What about you?"
"I can do this with complete confidence. When do you want me to show you the results? I can go to the campus clinic right now."
"That's a pain. Ike. I know you're a weirdo who obsesses over every little detail and outcome."
The two of them arrived at Hayate's apartment. Umi-chan smelled the fresh, dehumidified air of the apartment. The heater made her feel sleepy.
As the door to his apartment closed, Hayate went to his drawer and pulled out a file, which he handed to Umi.
"Please heat up the pot for me. I'm going to take a shower first. You can eat first."
Umi-chan did so. After heating up the pot, which she wasn't sure if Hayate had made or bought outside, Umi-chan said "Itadakimasu" and began to eat.
By the time she finished another bite, Hayate was already behind her, dropping his lips to her neck.
Ha?
Umi swallowed and turned her head away, finding Hayate's head clamped in the crook of her neck. Goosebumps rose and the warmth of his skin filled her with a familiar sensation.
Quite a time for this to catch a break.
Can't you see I'm eating? Umi muttered to herself.
However, when Hayate raised his head, he whispered to her ear. "Did you see the result?"
"Of course. I'm not sleepy enough to close my eyes yet."
"Do you want to sleep? You can sleep."
Nandesu ka? Isn't he overstepping the line? Looks like someone's going to lose.
Umi smiled inwardly.
"Ii ya." Umi shook her head and swallowed. "That's not why I came here. If I'm just going to sleep, the dorms are better. Let me take a shower."
This time, Hayate shook his head. "Let's get started."
And so their dormant physical relationship resumed.
